October’s “From the Podium” A Message from our Music Director

Our third annual Autumn Promenade was a spectacularly memorable event. One of the highlights for me was conducting our combined instrumental and vocal forces in the evening’s musical finale: Gloria in excelsis, from Vivaldi’s Gloria. Since 2007, the Vermont Youth Orchestra Association has offered vocal ensemble opportunities designed to empower young Vermonters to develop a lifelong passion for singing. Our vocal students perform great choral repertoire under the guidance of expert conductors, who are recognized as educational leaders in our state. They also take part—as they did at Autumn Promenade—in important collaborations with their instrumental peers at the VYOA. Choral-orchestral performances provide our students valuable experiences that broaden their artistic understanding, and expose them to a wider range of inspiring repertoire.

As I conducted the first rehearsal for our performance of the Gloria, I watched with excitement to see musical discoveries being made by players and singers alike while they worked together. One of the great privileges of my role as music director is facilitating occasions like this, when our students’ musical horizons expand before their very ears. Thank you to everyone who helped make Autumn Promenade a wonderful evening for our friends and supporters, as well as an important musical experience for our talented students.

Don’t miss the next choral-orchestral offering at the VYOA—it’ll be a new and inspiring feature of this year’s OrchestraChorusPalooza!

Musically Yours,
Benjamin Klemme
Music Director